Faith can get you killed
by marauderin
Summary: After Cecily and Gabriel were witnesses of a murder, they both get into danger and need to work together. Can they find the murderer before he will find them? What will happen when they realized that the case is bigger than she ever imaged? And, can their faith get them killed? Cecily and Gabriel, Modern/Crime AU
1. Prologue

**Prologue**

faith [/feɪθ/];  
If you google the word, you will find on Wikipedia this definition: Faith is subjective confidence or trust in a person, thing, deity [...] The word faith is often used as a conceptual synonym for hope, trust, belief or knowledge.  
But faith isn't the same for everyone.  
There once was a boy who never had faith in himself. To many people just knew the mask he had put on and not the real boy. He didn't trust easily but was very loyal.  
And there once was a girl who had faith in people who didn't have faith in themselves. She left to get something back and got into a big adventure. And she realised that she wouldn't get back. Because after the adventure, this was her past and sometimes moving on means not coming back.  
You may ask now, what the two people have to do with each other.  
Well, they were both loyal. Loyal to their families and friends. And they shared love. With their loyalty and faith they matched each other. But at the beginning of this story they didn't know one thing:  
Faith can get you killed.

* * *

**_A/N_**: So this was only the prologue, I hope you like it :) More information at the next chapter. Laura xx


	2. Suprises!

**_A/N:_**Hey! Since I love Cecily and Gabriel I searched throw FF and was a little bit sad as I found so less FF about them. This is why I decided that I'll write my own FF for all the Cecily and Gabriel shippers out there :)

The story is set in the modern London, where Cecily is 19 and Gabriel is 20 and they both go on the same College. Yeah, I know I changed their age differences, because I want them all go on College and otherwise it wouldn't have worked.

They major characters are Cecily and Gabriel! You will see a little bit of Will too, but it's not a Wessa or Jessa FF! Also I made some OC's but you will see :)

If you have any questions, just PM me or ask me on my Tumblr ( downwxrldersDOTtumblrDOTcom)

_And please, English isn't my mother language so please, show mercy! _

**_Disclaimer_**: I don't own the characters! They belong to the awesome Cassandra Clare and their Infernal Devices! Also the writing style is inspired by the FF-user Jewels5 so also shutout to her (I love your storys! :o)

**Thanks to my awesome beta Monica (llghtwoodDOTtumblrDOWcom)! Thank you for correcting all my mistakes and reading through my text! Visit her blog she is just so sweet and amazing!**

* * *

(Suprises?!)

Having an older brother was annoying.

This opinion was Cecily Herondale's.

Many girls would agree with Cecily Herondale. But not because they liked Cecily or because they also had an older brother. No, most of them would agree with her because all of them fancied her older brother Will Herondale. And for them it would be such a shame to be related to him.

But for Cecily, having an older brother was exhausting. Not that she didn't love her brother, but she never had it easy with Will. If you knew Will, you would understand. He was a handsome boy- well as 20 years old he was more a man than a boy- with wavy black hair and dark blue eyes. He was most of the time rude to teachers and spoke out the ugly truth, which made half of the school scared of him. The other half was mostly girls who fancied him. But luckily, Will wasn't a player. If you knew Will Herondale better you would see that he behaved a lot differently among his best friends, Tessa Gray and Jem Carstairs.

But every time Cecily saw her brother, she saw a little boy who climbed on trees and was too scared to get back down. So she could forgive him easily, but also knew that he made a lot of mistakes in his life.

You see, understanding the Herondales is hard. With their mixture of good looks and fear and a little bit self contempt they are different.

But now, back to the morning where Cecily Herondale was annoyed by her brother, back to this cold February day where things are going to change. Or the day where Will had a bloody lip (not a surprise), Cecily was furious (not a surprise), Jem took the side of his best friend (not a surprise) and Gabriel checked somebody out (not a surprise).

But if all these things wouldn't have happened on this day, things would be surprisingly different.

* * *

On this infamous day, a 17th, Cecily ran through the floors of the Shadowhunter University. Her black hair flew behind her and her blue eyes were full of anger.

The day began well. It was finally warm enough for Cecily to wear her new skirt and she got a good mark on her work. Everything seemed perfect as she walked, chatting with her best friend, Fanny Greymark, through the University. They both had no lectures now and were on the way to get their well needed coffee.

For a student, coffee was the important thing in life. But this didn't mean that everyone drank the same coffee. Cecily liked her coffee black as the night, Gabriel wasn't picky and Will didn't like coffee at all. He preferred tea 'like a true Briton' as he said. But they all needed a thing to be full awake and coffee was the easiest way.

So, Cecily was on her way to get her coffee, which she wanted for hours, as Jessamine Lovelace interrupted them.

"Hey Cecily!" the blonde girl shouted.

They both weren't really friends since Jess was a year older than Cecy and well… if you want to say it nicely, Will and Jessamine didn't really like each other. In other words: they hated each other like hell. If you were in a room with both of them, the air would be thick with anger. Even the teachers didn't pair them together. One once tried it and let's just say the hole in the ceiling isn't repaired yet.

This was why Cecily was very surprised that the other girl spoke to her on this fateful day. She turned around and whipped her thick black hair out of her face.

"Yeah, what's the matter?"

"It's about your brother…" Jessamine's smile grew bigger, if it was possible. Uh oh.

"He got in a fight with this other boy- Lightwood I think- and it's pretty awesome!"

It's understandable that Jessamine Lovelace was happy on this 17th of February.

It's also understandable that Cecily was furious on this 17th of February. The younger girl managed to nod politely and then turned around and rushed through the floors.

Everyone quickly made room for her as they saw the anger in her eyes. Because if you see an angry Herondale (who hasn't had her coffee), you should better get out of the way.

* * *

The screaming and cheering came to the girl's ear before she could see her brother. As she arrived, through the crowd, she easily spotted Will with his dark hair.

He had the other boy grabbed by his white shirt and was about to whip him as Cecily ran between them both. She put her arms around Will's body and dragged him a few steps away from the other boy.

Giving them both angry glances she said with an icy cold voice. "Stop it now. Both of you."

Will's hard expression softened a little as he saw his little sister and put a typically 'older brother smile' on.

"Cecily! I'm confused! Why did you stop this wonderful fight when you could help me beat this bloody Lightworm!"

His voice was light as he would talk about the weather. But Cecily knew her brother and saw through his mask.

"Save it Will. It's not ok to punch other people! And please if you do, don't do it on the campus!"

"I thought I would never say this but the first time in history I agree with a Herondale." a new voice spoke behind Cecily. With a very good imitation of Cecily's voice the boy said, "It's not ok to punch-…"

"Don't you dare to talk to me like that! You are not better!" Cecily interrupted, furious, and turned around.

It was the first time she could saw the boy in his full figure. The first thing she realized was that he was tall. Really, really tall. Maybe even taller than Will. The second was that he was really handsome, even with his bruises and blubber lip. He had incredible green eyes, tousled brown hair, and sharp cheekbones. But Cecily didn't care if he looked good.

Growing up with a brother who is- quoting other girls 'like one of those models'- there weren't a lot of boys who stood out as good-looking for her. But this one was truly handsome. Maybe in another way than Will, but Cecily had to admit the fact that this boy was.

The boy's face changed expression as he saw her. His lips parted and he slowly looked down at her, taking her in. Cecily could feel her cheeks burn. She wasn't really used to be looked at like this and it made her uncomfortable. Sure, she had had a few boyfriends and a lot of guys asked her out, but she didn't like to be looked at like this. His eyes met hers and he gave her a smirk. And with that the anger came back to Cecily.

"If you think that you are better than Will than you are wrong. You don't have any privilege to speak to Will this way. I don't like it when someone insults my brother. I'm his sister, so I have the right to speak to him however I want to, but you are not part of our family. You both exactly know that fighting isn't the right way to solve your problems or whatever. It makes me sick that I need to play the adult. And…" Cecily searched for the right words.

She didn't know what exactly to say, she just hated the whole situation she was in. She hated to play the adult. She hated to clean up Will's mistakes. And she hated that she suddenly had the urge to stamp her feet like a little kid.

The boy's- Lightwood, Cecily remembered- face went blank while she spoke. With a cold voice he began to say something as someone interrupted him.

"Will, what have you done again?"

The girl who had spoken was Tessa Gray, Will's best friend and next to her was Jem Carstairs, who was like a brother to Will even if they weren't related by blood.

As Cecily saw them she threw her hands in the air.

"Finally. They will clear the situation and-hopefully- kick your asses!" Cecily shouted.

"Will, are you hurt? You know that you shouldn't get into a fight." said Jem Carstairs as he looked at Will's bloody face.

"Yes he shouldn't! Please, Jem, tell him that he should grow up and behave like a big man! I'm tired of playing the adult! This week you got in a fight, Will, last week you talked back to a teacher and nearly got kicked out of College. Please, Jem… Tell him he… I can't do this anymore."

Cecily's words were angrier than she intended. She let a little of her inner angst came out and she would slap herself for this. The Lightwood-boy gave her a strange look but Cecily didn't care.

Jem Castairs didn't like anger. He was a calm and peaceful person and didn't like fights and arguments. He was a kind of quiet person but this didn't mean he wasn't funny. Jem Carstairs just liked being with his friends or playing the violin.

So as Cecily Herondale spoke to him on this special day he tried to calm her.

"See, Cecily," he stated, "Will is well aware of his actions. And he is old enough to make his own decisions. If they are good or bad, this is his thing."

"No, he is…"

"Cecily, you can't blame Will forever for leaving you. He had his reasons." The new voice who spoke was Tessa.

Cecily went quiet. She searched in her mind for a good response but she couldn't find anything worth saying right now. Speechless, she stood there and let the words sink in. And deep inside she knew the words were true.

Suddenly, Cecily felt her eyes burning and watering. Quickly, she turned her back to the others. _They wouldn't see her cry_, she thought. _I will not cry for these people. I'm not weak. I can do this_.

But sometimes your body does not obey your mind. It reacts other than you want it to. In Cecily's case, it was the same. Her eyes wouldn't stop burning and she felt a tear drop down. She managed for her feet to move and before she realized it, she ran away.

Cecily didn't hear Will shouting after her. Cecily didn't notice that Tessa saw her tears. Cecily didn't see that the unknown boy was watching her running away with a strange look in his eyes.

* * *

**_A/N_**: So, this was the first chapter. I hope you liked it and I promise I'll try to make longer chapters :)

And I tried my best to stay in character and make them as less OOC as possible, but well we all have a different idea of a character.

Laura xx

Reviews are hot fictional boys!


	3. Run!

**_Disclaimer:_**The characters and some ideas belong to Cassandra Clare's book The Infernal Devices (which is sadly don't own). Also is the writing style a little bit inspired by the one from the FF-user Jewels5 so shutout to her, too.

* * *

Sometimes good things happen to bad people.  
Sometimes bad things happen to good people.  
One isn't simply bad or good. We make right and wrong decisions.  
Some make more wrong than right ones.  
But you know, your decisions don't make out your you have a reason to act the way you do, and others don't know the reason. So for them the way you act seems mad to them.  
For you, it's maybe your only way.

* * *

Gabriel Lightwood rubbed his forehead. The day was just half over and already strange. First, he got in a fight with William bloody Herondale (which wasn't strange) and then Will's little sister showed up (which was). The strange thing was, nearly half a year had passed and he hadn't noticed Will's sister at all. He hadn't seen her with her brother and he was pretty sure that he hadn't seen her on the floors- at least not really. Gabriel was sure because he wouldn't have just walked past a girl like Cecily, She was stunningly beautiful.  
Sure, there were a lot of pretty girls on the campus, but not one had caught his eyes like she did. Cecily Herondale didn't seem like the other girls for Gabriel. Cecily had her own mind and didn't let other people affect her. Yes, she truly wasn't like the other girls who only cared about boys, clothes, bands and Starbucks.  
Gabriel was still lost in his thoughts about girls with these amazing blue eyes (which he would dispute if someone would guess that he was thinking about his enemy's sister; of course not) as his best friend Tom Verlace caught up with him.  
"Hey, buddy, what's going on?" he greeted Gabriel.  
Sometimes Gabriel didn't know why they both were friends. Tom was a player and flirted with every girl. Sure, Gabriel enjoyed a flirt from time to time, but he wasn't really a player. His friend was lazy and crazy (yes that rhymed), carried his heart on his tongue and easily got new girls with his handsome face. Tom Verlace had silky black hair and dark eyes and the girls seemed to like this. But Gabriel also knew other sides of Tom. He could be funny and intelligent, he loved the same sports as Gabriel and they just got around well with each other.  
And with time they became best friends even if they were not exactly the same; but they helped each other in different situations. They fitted each other and they shared all their secrets together. No other person could trust Gabriel one hundred percent.  
_Even though there is another person…_ Gabriel thought, but cut it off before he could finish his own thought. He didn't want to think about this special person at the moment. If he would let himself, there would be pain, pain, pain.  
He smirked at Tom. "Today is a strange day, isn't it?" Gabriel asked.  
The other boy raised an eyebrow and looked at his friend. Since he didn't answer, Tom Verlace quickly began to talk about another topic. He knew his friend well enough to know when he didn't want to talk  
about something.  
"So, where did you get your bruise, eh?"  
"Two words: bloody Herondale."

* * *

Later on this day, Gabriel Lightwood, Tom Verlace and George Morgenstern were on their ways home.  
"Dude, this Herondale chick is hot as hell. Go out with her and have fun, then you can break her heart and you will have revenged your sister." Tom Verlace grinned at his best friend. Of course Gabriel told the whole story to Tom and George; and while Tom found it pretty amusing, George felt the same way as Gabriel. This was always how their friendship worked. Tom was the player with a stupid- and to tell the truth, sometimes also a dirty- mind while George was a lot calmer, had good grades and gave good advice. For Gabriel, he was somewhere in between.  
Tom Verlace laughed while Gabriel blushed. "You know exactly that I won't do this. I don't break girls' hearts for fun… I'm not like you, mate."

Tom looked at his friend with puppy eyes. "I'm a bad person?"  
"You exactly know what I mean!"  
"Ok…well maybe I'm not God itself, but you really should do this. This Herondale ass deserve this."  
Gabriel rolled his eyes. "Yes, I totally should break a girl's heart just to have revenge on her brother!" he said ironically. The boys laughed and continued their way. They had forgotten their talk only moments after it happened.  
After a few hundred meters, the three boys said goodbye to each other and everyone continued on their own way.  
Maybe if Gabriel had gone with Tom on this day the whole story would be different.  
Maybe if he had gone a little bit earlier or later, things wouldn't be like this.  
But who knows? 'Maybe' never happened. It only exists in our minds.

Gabriel continued on his way. He would have walked past this small, dark street if he hadn't heard a strange noise. Immediately he stopped. He couldn't see anything because of the darkness and he held his breath to hear if there was a noise again, and there was.  
Slowly he put out his phone and turned the flashlight on. "Is someone there?" he asked as he looked in the alley.  
He wished he had never stopped as the flashlight caught two people.

* * *

Cecily slowly took another foot after another. She felt upset after the day at College and she wished just to get home and lay in bed. With a sigh she looked up and immediately spotted a familiar person.  
It was the Lightwood-boy who fought with Will earlier. For a moment Cecily considered to cross the street and act like she hadn't seen him. But then she spotted his face expression, and immediately began to run toward him.  
His face was pale, his eyes wide open and a silent scream on his lips. He looked like he just saw something tragic happen. As he had seen a dead body, Cecily thought.  
And she didn't know how accurate she was.  
Her footsteps were loud on the asphalt and a few meters before she approached him, Gabriel turned around. He looked shocked and didn't seem to see her at first. After he blinked he seemed suddenly aware of her appearance.  
Instantly Gabriel turned paler, if that was even possible, and he woke up from his stiffness. This only took place a few seconds and before Cecily could open her mouth to ask what was wrong, he shouted "Run!" and grabbed her on her arm to pull her with her.  
As Gabriel moved she could finally look at what scared Gabriel so much. There, on the dirty ground lied a body. A dead body.

Cecily never got the picture of the dead mean out of her head. Years after this all happened she still sometimes dreamt of the corpse. The pale face of the man in a lake of blood. His expensive clothes sucked with the red liquid and his mouth open in a scream, and she will never forget the man who knelt over the corpse, the knife in his hand, the face covered with a black mask. She had only looked for seconds at the man and his face was still burned in her mind.

Back to the faithful day, Cecily and Gabriel ran as quickly as possible. The man with the mask was only a few meters behind and Cecily imagined that she could already feel his breathing on her neck. They ran around the corner to another empty street. The adrenaline pulsed through Cecily's body and she felt more alive than ever.  
Maybe this always happens when you are near the death. You feel more alive. More awake. Like you could make everything. Like you could beat everyone. In fact, it's just a reaction of your body to keep you alive.  
Next to her, Cecily could feel Gabriel breathing loud. As she looked at him quickly she could see the glance in his eyes and she knew he felt the same. But her body also reminded her about the seriousness of the situation.

"We…need to hide," Cecily managed to say. The boy nodded as if he already had the thought and suddenly ran around the corner into another street. A moment later Cecily managed her feet to run in this direction, too.  
The street was dark and empty. Thick fog hung in the sky and a light post flickered.  
"Cecily, come here, and be quiet!" a voice whispered beside her.  
Cecily nearly jumped but recognised it soon enough as the Lightwood-boy's voice.  
The boy stood beside a big door and opened it. "Quick!" he whispered as he let Cecily enter. On the other side of the door were a patio and two staircases. Gabriel went to one of the staircases and went up. After a few steps, he turned around and looked at Cecily who still stood at the door. "Come on, or do you want to get killed?" he whispered and nodded at the stairs. Cecily sighed and then followed him. She didn't really have a choice. Get killed, or follow an unknown boy who your brother hates and maybe stay alive.  
The Herondale could feel the fear slowly coming back. The adrenaline was out of her blood and she felt exhausted. She could barely see the steps in the darkness. Slowly she put one foot after another, when suddenly a harsh light blinded her.  
Cecily screamed and tried to take a step backwards but, her foot missed the stair and she slipped. The next thing she could remember was opening her eyes and looking into the worried boy's face. She groaned as she sat up.  
"You scared me to death, Lightwood!"  
"I'm sorry I just wanted to h-…" The boy stopped mid-sentence. He stared at her with a shocked expression. "What's the matter? Please don't say this bloody freaking murderer is standing right behind me…"  
Instead of an answer the boy took Cecily's face and turned it around. "Damn it, Herondale, you're bleeding! Shit, this is much blood…" He touched her forehead and as he put down his fingers they were red.  
Immediately Cecily touched her face too. "But… But I don't feel it…" She said and hoped that the boy didn't hear her voice shaking at the end.  
"We need to call the ambulance!"

"No, it's not that bad, I mean it doesn't hurt right now."

The boy looked her straight in the eyes. "You need to take this seriously. I've seen wounds like this and if you don't treat them they can be dangerous!"

Cecily, who wanted to dispute, shut he mouth. The boy looked so worriedly at her that she did believe that the wound was worse than she thought. "But is it safe to go outside?" she asked.  
The Lightwood considered the answer in his head. "I think so, yes. If the murderer is clever, he would be far away right now and oh, we need to call the police! Shit, why haven't I thought about it earlier?!" He pulled his cell phone out and started to type a number in.  
Cecily just wanted to go to sleep. She didn't have her daily coffee yet and with all the things that had happened in the last half an hour… She felt like she was on her limit. Slowly her eyes began to close and her head sank to the cold floor.  
"Open your eyes, don't fall asleep right now! Please!" a voice cried.  
Cecily laid an arm over her eyes and groaned. "Don't worry Lightwood, a Herondale doesn't die that easily!"  
"Gabriel."

"What?" She turned her head to look at the boy.

"My name is Gabriel", he explained.  
"Gabriel, then."

* * *

The next hour was a blur for Cecily. She remembered when the ambulance came and drove her to the hospital (she still thought the injury wasn't that bad) and a nurse gave her a jab and did something on her head. When the woman said she could get some rest, Cecily nearly kissed the nurse of happiness. She rested her head on the light pillow and was asleep in a few seconds.

Cecily blinked once. Twice. The light was way too bright for her eyes and for a moment she didn't know where she was. But then all the memories came back, and Cecily wished she didn't wake up.  
The man had been dead. Dead, dead, dead. She turned the word in her mind and thought about it. How will it change her life? Will it make a difference that she had seen a dead body?  
Oh, Cecily really didn't know anything at this part of the story. She didn't know that her life would be turned upside down. She didn't know that the next words from Gabriel would change her life.  
Cecily didn't know that she would fight with people she loved and lie to them. She didn't know of the adventures in front of her and didn't know about the danger. Right now her brain just thought about the little changes this event could make.  
Not that she was stupid- in fact, Cecily Herondale was a very bright and clever girl- she just simply didn't know how important that event had been. The girl will learn all these things in a long, painful way.  
She would need to decide between what is easy and what is right.  
God bless the one who doesn't know the truth and life with the lie. It makes things easier for a while. But maybe not less painful.  
As Cecily finally managed to open her eyes, she stared at the white ceiling. For a moment she could just lay in peace. This would be the last time for a long while.  
Her blue eyes wandered around the little room and stopped when two green ones stared at her. Their eyes locked and for a moment Cecily and Gabriel just looked at each other.  
In Gabriel's green eyes there were so many different emotions- upset, surprise, helplessness, and most of all, fear. Cecily had the feeling that she drowned in his emotions.  
Then the boy closed his eyes and cut off the emotions. While he couldn't see her, Cecily quickly drove her eyes over the boy.  
He sat with his back to the wall, his eyes shut and his shoulders tensed. On his faces was dirt and he looked tired in two ways. Tired because of the lack of sleep and tired of life. As if he suddenly carried the weight of the world on his shoulders. Before Cecily could ask what happened, the boy opened the mouth.  
"The police didn't find the dead man."

* * *

**_A/N:_** Well, so here I am again! I hope you liked the chapter and everything was clear, but if you still have questions, just ask me! :) I don't like this chapter very much, because a lot of stuff happened which will be important for the story line (as you see). Laura xx

**Thanks to my awesome betas, Monica **(llghtwood_tumblr_com) **and Louise **(everddale_tumblr_com) (yes i make enough mistakes for two people haha) **for reading through my text and correcting it! ily**

_Reviews are Gabriel Lightwood's! _


	4. Trust, lies and old fears

3. (Trust, lies and old fears)

**_A/N_**: Hey guys, sorry for the late update! And i promised longer chapters, didn't i? :) Maybe everything is happening very fast in this chapter and/or you don't like how the story turns out so you close this FF and never come back again, but I would be so happy if you give it a try :)

**_Disclaimer:_** The characters belong to Cassandra Clare and the writing stile is inspired by Jewels4's!

**Thanks to my betas Lou and Kate (links to their perfections on my profile!)**

* * *

Cecily never really believed that a few words can change a life. But now, looking back at what happened, she needed to admit that these few words form Gabriel, a practically stranger back there, changed her life.

When he said this little sentence to her, she didn't understand at first.

"What do you mean? They haven't found the body?!"

"I called the police and they drove to the crime scene. But when they get there, the didn't find the dead man. There was nothing, not even a drop of blood…"

"I… I don't… How?"

The girls mind tried to understand what the words that came out of Gabriel's mouth meant. She turned the words around, examining them from all sides. But they didn't make any sense. She had seen the dead body. All the blood. The man's mouth hanging open.

And now, the Lightwood boy told her that the police hadn't found a body? Not even blood?

"The murderer must have came back, removed the body and cleaned the place… The police won't believe us, Cecily!"

His voice came out like a whisper. When she looked at Gabriel's incredible green eyes she thought she was seeing a little boy and not a 21-year old man. And she understood his feelings. All the confusion. The fear. The panic. Cecily understood because she felt the same.

They had seen a dead man. A man who had family. Friends. And now he was gone. Someone took control of his life and just killed him.

_What if it had been somebody she knew._ Cecily thought about it over and over. What if it had been Will. Or her parents. Fanny…

"No, no, no, not again!", Cecily thought. She couldn't lose herself in the dark thoughts. _Not again._

They had seen such a terrible thing at a young age. And now, nobody believed them. There was nobody who could arrest the murderer. And the family of the man would live without acknowledging what had happened to him. _Life isn't fair._

What now? What if the slayer had seen their faces. What if he recognised them?

They were alone on this. The weight of a life lay on their shoulders. Would they be in danger? Would the man try to kill them? Would-…

Cecily cut off her thoughts. She needed to try to forget for a while, till she could think clear again.

Her heart pounded on her chest as she took a deep breath. _Hadn't enough bad things happened in her life?!_

She wrapped her arms around her body, as if she needed to hold herself, or she would break into thousand peaces. Her eyes stared at something only she could see, as she tried not to cry.

Suddenly she felt a hot breath against her neck and a hand was on her shoulder.

"Get some rest, you need it. Your body needs to heal", Gabriel said.

Cecily lied back on the bed. She felt tired again. And she knew that even in her dreams reality would come after her.

"What are we going to do?"

Before Gabriel could answer her question the door flew open and Will Herondale came in.

He looked worried but as he saw Gabriel next to Cecily his expression turned angry.

"Hands off my sister, Lightworm!", he snapped.

Gabriel's eyes darkened and for a moment he looked like he would respond, but he turned around and left the room quietly.

Will went to his sister and stroked her raven black hair.

"What happened to you?"

His voice was tiny and worried. Cecily knew why. She was sure she scared he brother to death when the hospital called to tell him that she was injured. It wouldn't have been the fist time Will needed to visit a sister in the hospital.

Her gaze was still fixed at the door where Gabriel left as she said her next words.

"I tripped and fell. Nothing to worry about."

After Cecily Herondale managed to persuade the doctors that she was okay, Will drove her home. As they drove out of London, where the landscape became more and more greener, Cecily felt a little happier. There was not a place like home. Even if their new house wasn't as precious as their old one, it was still _home._

For most people, home would be a place of peace. Not for Cecily.

"There is no peaceful place for a Herondale. Not in this world", the girl thought bitterly.

Home was a place where she could close her eyes without fearing a nightmare. Where she could have some happy moments.

After what happened to Ella… The girl quickly ended the thought. She wouldn't think about Ella, not today. Seeing Will at school everyday was hard enough.

"I'm a strong, gown-up girl", Cecily whispered to herself.

"Yes, you are!"

Surprised the girl looked at her brother. Cecily hadn't thought that Will could hear her, but Will had excellent ears. Her brother looked at her with the same, dark blue eyes as hers. And she knew that he had the same thoughts.

"Please, Will, come home!"

Her voice was nothing more than a whisper, a breath of wind. He looked away from her, but not fast enough that she couldn't see the pain in his eyes. Will's gaze was fixed on the highway and a few seconds passed before he answered.

"This isn't my home. Not any more My home is my flat in London."

"Liar!", Cecily shouted.

She couldn't stop herself. It was like a game to them both, everyone follows the same steps again and again. But Cecily couldn't just stop trying.

"I'm not lying, Cecily!"

Will's voice was tensed and so was his body. He tried his best to control his emotions but Will never had been good at it.

As Cecily saw he brother like this her voice softened.

"Home is, where your heart belongs, Will. I know you are lying."

Seconds passed as they drove in silence. It got dark and the car lights were like stars on the highway.

"Then, Cecily, my heart doesn't belong there!"

* * *

Gabriel Lightwood opened the door to the flat. It belonged to him, Tom and George. They knew each other since they were kids, because their parents belonged to the same group of friends. When they went to collage they decided that they had enough from their old people and bought this flat.

"Anybody here? Guys, you won't believe what happened to me!", Gabriel shouted.

The messy, curly brown haired head from George appeared from the kitchen.

"What?", he asked and took a bit of the sandwich in his hand.

Gabriel went to the couch and fell on it.

"Where is Tom?", he asked and closed his eyes.

As something heavy landed on his belly he knew the answer.

"Get off of me, you git!", the Lightwood grunted and tried to push the body off him.

Tom just laughed and took the sandwich out of Georges hand.

"Aw, someone missed me!"

"Yeah sure, you pain in the arse!"

The answer was another laugh but Tom finally moved and sat on the floor before Gabriel. After George managed to get his sandwich back and the boys were quiet Gabriel took a deep breath.

"Man, I wish I had gone to the gym with you guys! Then nothing would have happened!"

Slowly he told them the hole story, from the beginning in the dark street till the hospital.

For a second Gabriel thought not telling his friends wouldn't be bad. They were his best friends and he trusted them blind.

We can't change the past and it a good thing, because every good and bad choice brings us where we are. So maybe if Gabriel hadn't been so loyal and told his friends, the whole story would have been a little bit different. But we shouldn't spend our whole life in the past, we should life now, in the presents.

What Gabriel didn't know was that one shouldn't trust easily. But at this point of the story, Gabriel trusted too easily. He wanted to trust someone, he needed someone he could tell everything to.

So he sat there and told them everything what had happened.

* * *

What is a lie? When you tell someone something that isn't true? Is it a lie when you just don't tell some parts of the truth? Every person defines the word differently.

But is it a lie if you tell one to protect someone? Can lies be good?

Cecily Herondale didn't know. She just knew that she lied to her brother to protect him. To keep him, if the situation turned out bad, safe. But she hated lying. Cecily believed that if someone asked somebody a question, one must reply with the truth. So she told the truth almost always.

But she didn't tell the truth to Will.

Lies are difficult to understand. You can build on them but they can also destroy everything. How different would the world be if all people would be honest?

"Damn it", Cecily muttered.

She fell on her bed, face first. Her parents weren't home when she arrived so she hadn't faced them yet. Linette and Edmund Herondale, her parents, where still working.

_Like always_, Cecily thought.

They both worked a lot and where barely home during the week. Cecily knew the reasons why.

The girl groaned. Her head ached and she was tired but still couldn't sleep. The medicine had faded and her hole body felt like she had run a marathon.

When her phone rang, Cecily ignored it and shut her eyes. After the second time someone called her, she angrily picked it up.

"Who is stupid enough to upset me in such an awful mood?"

"Hello sunshine, I'm fine, thank you for asking", a familiar, female voice said.

"Oi Fanny, sorry I just have the worst headache!", Cecily said, a lot friendlier now, to her best friend.

Phone still on her ear, she sat up in her bad and looked on her watch. 8:38.

"So, darling, I heard you had a very _interesting_ time today…"

The way Fanny Greymark said the word, with amusement and like she knew something, made Cecily shiver.

"What do you mean? What have you heard?"

"Well, I heard that our little queen went to the hospital. And the interesting fact is, that no one less than Gabriel Lightwood brought you there. The rumours are a little bit split up between you being the new dream couple of the school or him hurting you to revenge on Will for the fight earlier today. But I know you and I don't believe anything about that, hun. So tell me, what happened really?"

For a moment Cecily considered telling Fanny the truth. She was her best friend and they never kept secrets from each other. They shared everything. But for what price?

"I kind of tripped and fell. Gabriel was fortunately also there so he brought me to hospital. I still don't know why, the injury wasn't that bad. He seemed a little bit overprotecting. Whatever. Can I copy your notes? I didn't get what your dear professor was talking about, like always."

Cecily tried to keep her voice calm like nothing happened and she was just bored of the conversation. But Fanny Greymark knew her too well.

"Yeah, don't try to get away from this topic. I know you too well for your own good and you will me tell me more about your Lightwood boy", her voice was full of humour and Cecily groaned.

"First of all, he isn't _my _Lightwood boy. I don't even know him. He seems nice and I don't really get why my brother hates him. Anything else you would like to know?" "Oh dear, you are forgettin that he is really, and I mean really, really handsome! Don't tell me you haven't noticed!"

"Yes, OK he is really handsome. But now shut up!"

Fanny's answer was only a new wave of laughter.

Sleeping is a nice thing. You lay in a comfortable bed and you can shut out the world for a moment. In your dreams you can imagine wonderful, better things. But sadly, the only dreams you can remember are often nightmares. And while you are asleep time flows by and when you wake up, another day is here. Another change. A day full of new decisions you need to make, without knowing what they will bring you.

But before you fall asleep, there is this time when you lay in your bed and try to shut your eyes, but to many thoughts are in your mind. Dark thoughts. Thoughts about life. About death.

And sometimes when the thoughts are unusual dark and strong, they weave a bound to reality. Not even in your dreams you can escape from the fear and angst. You are bounded to these thoughts and in worst case, you can't even fall asleep. A living nightmare, trapped in reality.

This happened to Cecily Herondale on these night of the 17th of February. Her blue eyes were wide open, as horrible pictures flew around in her mind. And she really tried to sleep. But every time she closed her eyes and sunk into the darkness, reality crashed against her inner eyes, like water on a ship, trying to find a way deeper inside. So with a groan, Cecily opened her eyes again and looked at the ceiling as time passed by.

Hours later, at the college building, the girl walked slowly against the storm of people to her classroom. She fell on a seat at the back of the room, dropped her bag next to her and pulled up the hood of her sweater. Head down on the desk, she hoped for the hour to be over soon.

Cecily didn't get anything from this lesson. She really tried to listen, but tiredness overcame her. Her body hurt and so did her soul, and the worst thing was, that she couldn't speak to anyone. Or at least, the only person she could talk to was a stranger.

* * *

Somehow Cecily managed to get through the school day. Gladly she hadn't a long school day today, so at three afternoon she was on her way home. She had parked her car a few streets away, since all the parking spots for the college had been taken.

This was why she walked alone to her car. The streets were empty and a breath of wind let Cecily shiver. She could already see her car, with it's bright red colour, at the end of the street.

Suddenly, there was a noise behind her and the girl jumped around. Her heart pounded inside her chest and she breathed hard. But there was no one.

"Probably only a cat. Or the wind", Cecily tried to calm herself. There was this noise again. This time, closer. Her survival instincts kicked in and before she realised what she was doing, she ran to her car.

Bump. Bump. Bump.

The only noise she could hear were her footsteps on the ground. Still, she couldn't shake off the feeling that someone was hunting her. The sun was behind a building and the place was covered in shadows. There was no breeze of wind, no birds singing. It was as if the world was holding its breath to see what will happen next.

Out of the blue, two hands grabbed Cecily and pull her into a dark room. A hand covered her mouth and the other pressed her against the wall. The cold of the stones soaked through her clothes to her skin and she broke out in cold sweat.

She was about to start screaming and kicking, as she felt a breath against her ear.

"It's me. Gabriel. Please be quiet!"

The girl relaxed a little and the hand disappeared from her mouth. A moment later, Cecily saw the reason why Gabriel hid her. A tall, athletic man ran out of where she came. He wore black jogging pants, trainers and a black sweater with a sign on them. The hood was on his head and his eyes were behind big, black sunglasses so you couldn't make out his features.

He stopped right next to Cecily's car and looked around. After a while he seemed to get uncomfortable and checked out the number plate. In their stash, the girls eyes widened.

Cecily didn't know how long she stood there, not moving and Gabriel breathing next to her. Finally, after what felt like hours, the guy looked around for the last time and then started jogging down the street. They waited a few minutes after he disappeared to be sure, before they left the doorway.

The girl wanted to go to her car but the boy grabbed her hand and pulled her with him. Quickly, Gabriel took Cecily to the next door, a café.

There were only a few other people inside, an old man with a cowboy hat, another young student who was reading a book and a woman with her little boy. Nobody talked and the only noises were the heater and a radio from the kitchen. A few lamps emitted a yellowish light and the seats were scuffed but all in all the place wasn't bad. The waitress, a dark haired woman around 30, cleaned glasses as the students entered. With tired eyes she watched them sit on the table in the corner of the room.

The adrenaline in Cecily's and Gabriel's blood was gone and the girl buried her face in her hands as they sat down. Gabriel didn't know what to do with this situation, if he should comfort her or let her alone. Unsure he rubbed his chin and was about to stroke her black hair to make her feel better, as the waitress came to her table. The woman pulled out a pad and a pencil. Without saying a word, she waited for their order.

With an unreadable expression Cecily lifted her head and smoothed her clothes.

"Just a coffee, please. Black", she ordered.

The woman nodded and turned to Gabriel and fixed him with her eyes.

"Uhm, what would you suggest?"

After a moment of thinking, the waitress answered bored. "Well, we have the best chocolate cake in London."

"OK, then I'll take one for me and one for the lady here", he said, now smiling.

Before Cecily could protest, the female went away.

"Did you see her creepy stare? I fought she wanted to eat me for her next meal!", the boy whispered with a fake shocked face.

The young Herondale could only roll her eyes. "Stop being a twat! And secondly, I don't want a chocolate cake. Don't order for me, I'm not a helpless little girl!"

Gabriel leaned back, a grin on his lips. "Well, apparently you are a girl and to me you are little. And helpless-"

"Don't you dare finish this statement!", the girl said coldly, in her eyes no sign of friendliness.

The boy shrugged and looked at his fingers. Awkward silence settled between them till the food and coffee came.

Carefully, Cecily eyed the chocolate cake and took a piece with the fork. Chocolate sauce ran down the cake and the girl had to admit, that it smelled delicious. The chocolate cake was sweet and soft and practically melted on Cecily's tongue.

"Oh, dear Lord, this is really the best chocolate cake I've ever eaten! Thanks for ordering, Lightwood", the girl groaned and took another piece.

As she looked up, she found Gabriel watching at her smiling, his cake untouched.

"Really, try this, it's like a piece of heaven!"

"I just wanted to see your expression. So you take it back? Reprimanding me for ordering it?", the boy smiled.

Cecily blushed a little and muttered a 'sorry'. She didn't like to be reminded that she made mistakes, but if she had, she would apologise.

After they were both finished and filled with chocolate, Gabriel laid down his fork, now serious.

"We need to talk!"

"You know, this would sound like a break up line if we were together."

The boy shot her a look but couldn't hide his smile. "Whatever. First of all, you shouldn't get to your car again next time. I think the… uhm… murderer… saw you in your car driving away from the hospital. We need to be more careful!"

Cecily nodded. She had already thought about this, and there was a horrible thought in her mind.

"Do you… Do you think he knows were we go to college? If yes, will he attack us there?", she asked scared.

There weren't a lot of things in the world that could scare Cecily Herondale. But the fact that a killer could hunt them and they weren't safe any more, not even at their school, terrified her. Most of all, she was scared that her friends-that Fanny-could be in danger. Loyalty was one of Cecily's greatest characteristics. But it was also one of her most fatal flaws.

But to her relief the boy shook his head. "No, I don't think so. Or at least I hope not. But no, I don't think he would take the risk to attack as at college, not in front of all the people. Still, we shouldn't be alone. Let's just hope the murderer doesn't want to take the risk and just… leaves us alone."

They discussed a few things, how they could stay safe. While they talked, Gabriel noticed a few things about Cecily Herondale. On the first look, she seemed like a calm person but after a while he was aware of little habits, which showed that she was nervous. Her eyes travelled around and she didn't look at a point longer than a few seconds. Another sign was her fingers: she either pounded on the wooden table or she swept her hair back. After she stroked her hair for the twelfth time in one minute, Gabriel caught her arm mid-air.

"Stop it, please. It's a bit annoying."

The Herondale shot him a cold glaze and than looked at her arm. The boy had forgotten that he was still holding it and he let go of her immediately.

"You just stroke your hair back every two seconds", he muttered an explanation under his breath.

Cecily looked at him confused but didn't ask.

"So,.. ehrm… are you often alone at home?", Gabriel tried to change the topic.

After a moment of thinking, Cecily answered. "Yes, I am. This may sound weird to you, but my parents work a lot, even on the weekends. Since there aren't neighbours near, nobody would notice if I got attacked."

Her voice was calm, as if they talked about random things like the weather. A cold shiver ran down Gabriel's back. Even if they called it 'attack' they both know there was a rare chance of survivor if they got 'attacked'.

"This will surprise you, but I understand."

As he saw Cecily's face he quickly explained.

"I mean, I can understand that with your parents. My dad also works a lot and is barley at home."

His jaw tensed as he talked about his family and Cecily was clever enough to not ask any questions. She knew this expression from Will, when somebody asked them about their family. But what reason had Gabriel to feel uncomfortable about his family? The girl stifled her curiosity because she knew the boy wouldn't say anything more and she didn't want to push him.

"So, what are we going to do?"

Playing with her empty cup, Cecily looked at Gabriel and waited for his response. His green eyes were dark and she imaged that in his head he worked hard on an idea. A few minutes of silence passed and Cecily could feel her thoughts drifting away, as a bright smile appeared on Gabriel's face.

"OK, this isn't a good sign and whatever the idea is, no!"

"Oi, come on, you haven't even heard what I wanted to say!"

"But I know this expression. Will had it on often and one of these ideas ended up with the hole kitchen flooded! So, no way!"

The boy was still smiling and Cecily had the urge to punch it out of his face. They stared at each other, till the girl's curiosity took over.

"OK, it might be good if you told me what you were thinking about, so I can make a plan which is the opposite of it!", she muttered not looking at his face.

The boy laughed.

This was the one of many little battles they would have. This was the first of a lot Cecily would lose. But she would win a lot more. They would fight over little things and keep quiet about big ones. They would learn to enjoy these little fights, if they didn't already. They would deny the truth and tell lies. Fighting, they would get to know each other. They would find a routine in these fights. This fights would keep them up. But would they keep them alive?

"Fact is, that you can't continue living at your home, not when you are alone there. Moving in my flat isn't an option either. We don't have another room for you, expect if you want to share a bed with one of us", he smirked at her while saying this and Cecily could feel her cheeks heat up, " But, I know someone who has a big flat with enough space and doesn't need it. Someone who has enough place where I could teach you self-defence. A place where we could move in till things are better!"

Cecily Herondale wanted to argue about it, that she would never move to a flat with a stranger, but she could see his point.

If Cecily Herondale had decided to stay at the Herondale house, a lot of things wouldn't have happened. But maybe she would be dead, murdered while she was alone at home. Maybe things would have hurt less.

* * *

**_To Thalia:_**Thank you very much for your Review! I'm glad you like(d) my story and no, I don't have some special time where I update (sorry for taking so long again). I just write a chapter and then give it to my betas. Thank you so much for the compliment and I don't think you are a "bad" writer. I don't think such thing as "bad writers" exist. Like everything else you need to practice. Read a lot of stories and look how the writing style of the author is. I got very inspired by "The Live and Times" written by Jewels5... If anything else you want to know or chat, just PM me or ask me on my tumblr, i promise i don't bite :)

**I wrote you a story, you own me a review:) Jk you own me nothing. But a review would be nice.**


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